


That's Your Point of View

by Livewire



Category: Naruto
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-02
Updated: 2014-02-02
Packaged: 2018-01-10 23:58:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,344
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1166166
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Livewire/pseuds/Livewire
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Challenge fic.  How a point of view can change the outlook of a situation.</p>
            </blockquote>





	That's Your Point of View

Kakashi’s POV:

Before the long days of teaching three screaming troublesome brats, Hatake Kakashi would have said he had no interest in the academy or anyone within. Even when the son-of-his-sensei’s voice bounced off its walls, he had no desire to venture down those halls as he passed them on his way to the mission room. It wasn’t till just recently that he found his curiosity leading him to a large tree parked outside one particular window every morning when he was on his way to meet team seven at the various locations he scheduled.

In truth it was those very kids who were at fault for what he called his new found hobby. Nearly every day since he took them under his wing, the three had constantly compared every one of his actions and thoughts to that of one Umino Iruka, their previous teacher. Things like “Well Iruka-sensei said we’re supposed to do it this way” and “That’s not how Iruka-sensei taught us”. It was enough to drive any Jounin batty. He was sure if Asuma-san or Kuranai-san got this everyday they might even go confront the academy teacher just to give him a piece of their mind. But him? He never went about doing things the normal way. It was too predictable.

So here he found himself again, half past ten in the morning, lying along one of the more densely covered branches with his nose in a book and one eye staring intently over the top of the binding. That branch had a perfect bird’s eye view into the classroom. It had only taken him a week to try every angle in the tree to determine it so. It was almost pleasant watching the tanned chuunin go about his daily routine of teaching. Kakashi figured it was probably similar to the meditation Gai always tried to rope him into; listening to the birds and daily village life while watching the dance of emotions play across the man’s face.

A small chuckle shook his shoulders as he watched the teacher go off on some helpless child who had fallen asleep during the current history lesson. Apparently it happened a lot because as soon as that piece of chalk left the skilled hand, Iruka was already pulling another from a box stuffed in his pocket like ammunition. It was scenes like these that made listening to the kids whine about how long they waited for him worth it.

As the teacher finally finished the lesson and the class ran out of the room screaming for lunch, Kakashi took that as his queue to move on. He slowly stood up on the branch, watching for a moment longer before giving a silent hidden smile and teleporting away.

\-----

He remembered talking to the tanned chuunin years ago. There were a few days where he had sat down with the man and passed on advice that had been given to him from his own superiors prior. It was the least he could do to help a fellow shinobi in a troubling situation. Seeing him now happily teaching the new generations made him feel like his advice might have helped.

Because of this, after the chaos of the chuunin exams calmed down and things tried to get back on track, he found himself spending more time following the teacher around from the shadows. He knew what he had said to the man during the team selections had hurt him. But he had to carry out his duty. Maybe if he had listened to the teacher one of his students wouldn’t have had to sacrifice so much. He had to make sure that his words had not eaten into that spark the chuunin carried in his eyes.

With these thoughts, he slipped silently into the shadows of the next building. Iruka wasn’t far ahead going about his daily shopping of ingredients for dinner. Seeing that smiling face and hearing his answered greetings to others passing by made even the destruction that still surrounded them seem like a background detail overlooked by all. 

Recently he had been following the teacher outside of the school grounds now as he trained only one of his students in the mornings. With the other two off on their own training under others, he found himself with more free time and nothing to do but indulge in his hobby.

No, this was no longer a hobby he realized later that night as he climbed up onto the roof adjacent to the window looking into the teacher’s kitchen. He moved into his position of laying flat against the roof tiles allowing the natural shadows of the night cover him from view with practiced ease. His hobby had turned into an obsession he admitted to himself as he stayed there till long past the point where the apartment’s lights had been turned off. 

\------

If someone had asked him before why he did the things he did, he probably would have shrugged it off as curiosity or even concern for someone who was important to one of his precious students. But after he had been awoken from the coma, that view no longer held true.

Before he weighed most of his actions with the concerns of fellow shinobi, the next generation, and his own shinobi way. Things that always connected back in some way to what was the greater good for the village. Never before had he thought along the lines of what would be good for him and him alone.

After that long darkness that he assumed could only be described as something akin to death, he found his thoughts wondering to what if’s. Slowly he trained every day. and every night he found himself laying along those roof tiles, mind constantly turning over odd thoughts. They would only calm down once he could see the chuunin.

This is when he realized that his obsession had grown to something more. Something complicated and hard to explain for it was a feeling he hadn’t dealt with in a long time. He realized he had to act on this or forever be that shadow looking through windows.

Summing up the courage the next day, he strode the few steps across the mission room floor to stand before the table where the chuunin currently was organizing papers. “Would you like to go out for dinner tonight, Iruka-san?”

That was when he knew his obsession had turned to love.

\------------

Iruka’s POV:

Iruka’s eyebrow twitched in irritation. Finally having enough he stopped in the middle of the street and turned on his heel to look the infuriating man in the eye. “Would you stop following me?!”

Kakashi stopped mid step and looked up from his book with the kind of innocent look only one versed in hiding the truth could pull off. “huh? You talking to me?”

“Yes I’m talking to you! Is there another silver haired Jounin who insists on following me wherever I go that I should know about?!” Iruka huffed and rested his fists on his hips giving his best teacher glare of disapproval.

“Mah…” Kakashi looked up at the clouds slowly drifting through the skies about them. “I think I did see one standing outside your window last night.”

Iruka twitched. “You…were watching…my apartment?” One of his fists shook.

Casually closing his eye, Kakashi gave a shrug. “Nothing that different. I do it every night.” He then cocked his head to the side and crinkled his eye up in a smile. “By the way, could I try some of the surey you cooked the other day, Sensei? It looked really good.”

Kakashi blinked as he sensed sudden killing intent. Looking at the chuunin he found the brunet had turned nearly as red as a tomato with one fist shaking violently. “Ah, I think I forgot some paperwork the Hokage wanted me to fill out. See you later, Umino-san.” He quickly turned and left.

“Get back here and let me kill you, Perverted Stalker!” Iruka screamed in rage at the hastily retreating back of the copy-nin.

**Author's Note:**

> I thought about expanding on Iruka's section more but I liked the quick bitter sweetness of it. Reflects his temper well. Hope you liked!


End file.
